Pinnacle

*Whoosh!* Barely a breath after Yaoguang departed using Void Flicker, several figures traversed the void with the aid of Dao artifacts and rushed onto the battlefield. These were none other than the four Dao Lords who had intended to reinforce him—Juntian, Dihui, Qingya, and Danding. Yaoguang had only just achieved Dao Integration, yet he had effortlessly slain a veteran Dao Lord like Jimie with sweeping dominance. His overwhelming combat power once again displayed a majesty not a whit inferior to when Dao Lord Penglai was acclaimed as the foremost of the North Sea in years past. With such strength and potential, even Dao Lords Qingya and Danding had developed a desire to seize the opportunity to form ties with him. Thus, unlike earlier when they had stood idly by, the two of them actively followed Juntian and Dihui in pursuit of Yaoguang and Demon Saint Kunpeng, intending to lend Yaoguang a hand in this clash of Dao Integration experts and forge good karma. Only... When they finally caught up and arrived at the battlefield, it was completely devoid of people. Nothing remained but lingering turbulent void currents and the world's spiritual energy, which was only now reacting—churning wildly on the verge of forming a terrifying storm—indicating that a clash between Dao Lords of no small scale had just unfolded here. "Did we fail to catch up?" "That's not right. I clearly sensed the aura of Demon Saint Kunpeng erupting at full power right here..." "This is the place. Sense this void carefully; Kunpeng and Yaoguang had an intense battle here." The Dao Lords spoke up one after another. "Then where are they? Did Demon Saint Kunpeng flee again? Has Dao Lord Yaoguang pursued him?" Dao Lord Qingya frowned as he spoke. "Dao Lords of the Void are simply too fast, coming and going without a trace. We can't keep up with their movements at all..." Before Dao Lord Qingya could finish his sentence, Dao Lord Danding's divine mind fell into disarray, dissipating erratically. He could not even keep his emotions in check, crying out in shock, "How is this possible?!" "What happened?" "What did you discover?" Dao Lords Juntian and Dihui asked in haste. "Fallen..." Dao Lord Danding said, dazed, "Demon Saint Kunpeng... has fallen..." When Dao Lords Juntian and Dihui first heard the word "fallen," they thought some misfortune had befallen Yaoguang, that he had flared across the heavens like a shooting star only to vanish in an instant. Hearing the second half, they exhaled in relief. Yet immediately afterward, something struck them as wrong. Fallen? Demon Saint Kunpeng, one of the Demon race's Dao Integration experts, had fallen?! The two Dao Lords jerked their heads up, staring at Dao Lord Danding in sheer horror. "Dao Lord, what... what did you say?! Demon Saint Kunpeng... has fallen?!" "You should know that in addition to majoring in the Grand Dao of Life, I also minor in some soul Dao arts. If you mastered searching or sensory soul Dao arts, you would also be able to sense the peak intensity of unwillingness and terror left behind in this void by Demon Saint Kunpeng... This is unmistakably the imprint etched into the void before a soul disperses. From this, we can conclude..." Dao Lord Danding took a deep breath, his divine mind fluctuations trembling slightly despite himself. "Demon Saint Kunpeng has fallen!" Hearing Dao Lord Danding's words, the two Dao Lords froze in place, unable to regain their composure for a long time. A moment later, Dao Lord Juntian, who had also minored in a sensory soul Dao art, immediately activated his Dao art and conducted a swift search. At this moment, Dao Lord Taiwei, arriving a step late, reached the scene. "My apologies. I had to see to those juniors, so I arrived a bit late," he hurriedly explained. He was, after all, a Dao Lord of the Void. Allowing Yaoguang to strive for Dao Integration right before his eyes had already been an act of great leniency. As for stepping in to help Yaoguang and offending other Dao Lords in the process... In his heart, he was naturally very reluctant. As for why he had rushed over now... Evidently he had thought things through and harbored the same intention as Dao Lords Qingya and Danding—to forge good karma. Yaoguang was already this formidable right after advancing to Dao Integration, having crushed the veteran Dao Integration expert Jimie head-on. If he were allowed to settle into the Dao Lord realm for a period of time, how terrifying would his strength become? A horrifying powerhouse like this was also a Dao Lord of the Void, placing them in direct competition by nature. If Taiwei did not want to become a stepping stone for Yaoguang during the Dao Contention, cultivating goodwill early was an absolute necessity. At worst... At worst, he simply wouldn't participate in this upcoming Dao Contention. Caught in these conflicted thoughts, he had arrived a step slower than Dihui, Juntian, Danding, and the others, but he had come in the end. Only... At this moment, neither Dao Lord Danding, Dao Lord Qingya, nor Dao Lord Dihui showed any inclination to respond to him, doing nothing more than nodding perfunctorily. Puzzled, Dao Lord Taiwei could not help asking, "Where is Dao Lord Yaoguang now? He just had a fierce battle with Dao Lord Jimie, so he is likely not in peak condition. Facing an alien Dao Integration expert like Demon Saint Kunpeng, he might not have the upper hand. We must hurry to reinforce him. Why are you..." Before he could finish, he suddenly sensed something. "Wait, chaotic void power... A great battle erupted here? Demon Saint Kunpeng and Dao Lord Yaoguang fought here?" As he spoke, he focused his senses once again... As a Dao Lord of the Void, although he did not possess soul Dao arts like Dao Lords Danding and Juntian, his keen perception tied to the Grand Dao of the Void quickly picked up on something. In an instant... "A Dao Lord of the Void has fallen?!" "Fallen..." At that moment, Dao Lord Juntian arrived at his conclusion as well. "Demon Saint Kunpeng... has truly fallen." Dao Lord Taiwei, who had just concluded that a Dao Lord of the Void had fallen, had been uneasy, wondering if the fallen one might be Yaoguang—the newly ascended who had just fought a life-and-death battle with a veteran Dao Lord. Yet hearing Dao Lord Juntian's words left him completely stunned. "Kunpeng?" "It is him." Dao Lord Juntian sighed with emotion. "Had Danding not pointed it out, even I wouldn't have noticed the intense resentment, unwillingness, and terror lingering in this void that belonged to Demon Saint Kunpeng..." He let out a long breath. "This Demon race saint has truly fallen. He died right here!" At those words, Dao Lord Taiwei's pupils contracted violently. Fallen?! Demon Saint Kunpeng had fallen too?! Who did it?! Dao Lord Penglai?! No! Dao Lord Penglai had chased after Demon Saint Yulin, and Yulin and Kunpeng had fled in completely different directions. The one who pursued Demon Saint Kunpeng was... Yaoguang! Yaoguang?! Yaoguang, a newly ascended Dao Integration expert, had actually slain two Dao Lords of the Void back-to-back in such a short span of time?! Dao Lord Jimie was one thing. He was advanced in years, his strength likely down to eighty percent of his prime. Though still a cut above many newly ascended Dao Integration cultivators, he was no longer at his peak after all. But what about Demon Saint Kunpeng? That demon saint was only forty-some thousand years old to date, right in the most powerful, prime years of his life! And yet... He had fallen too?! Dead by Yaoguang's hands?! "Yaoguang!?" Dao Lord Taiwei muttered the name. At that moment, he felt as though a sledgehammer had slammed into his skull, leaving his entire head buzzing. "Too strong," Dao Lord Danding could not help saying. "And too ruthless," Dao Lord Qingya added. Having just advanced to Dao Integration, he had already slain two Dao Lords of the Void in succession! What staggering ferocity! One had to know that even among the various Dao Lords in the Ten Immortal Sects who had lived for tens of thousands of years, those with actual records of slaying a Dao Lord could be counted on one's fingers. After all, the differences in strength between Dao Lords were usually slight. Defeating one was relatively feasible, but killing one... Was exceedingly difficult. Especially during a Dao Contention, to prevent opponents from triggering mutual destruction, some Dao Lords would not pursue total annihilation. Furthermore, upon realizing that a situation was hopeless, some Dao Lords would withdraw from the contention. After all, across a Dao Lord's vast lifespan, there were at least ten opportunities to participate in Dao Contentions. Under such circumstances, the actual mortality rate for Dao Lords in any given Dao Contention was less than twenty percent. Now, Yaoguang, a newly minted Dao Lord, already had the lives of two Dao Lords on his hands. If this was not ferocious, what was? "Actually, thinking about it carefully, such performance from Yaoguang isn't entirely surprising. Don't forget, he practically achieved Dao Integration on the spot! That speed of integration is virtually unprecedented. Judging by how fast he integrated, one can imagine how unfathomably deep his foundation in the Void Dao must be. Now that his Dao Integration has succeeded, displaying power far surpassing that of an ordinary newcomer is... reasonable enough, wouldn't you say?" Dao Lord Dihui offered a somewhat strained explanation. Dao Lords Qingya, Danding, and Juntian looked at one another. Was that truly reasonable? Yet... Aside from that explanation, with the hard facts laid bare before their eyes, what else could they say? "To tell the truth, I'm even beginning to suspect whether Yaoguang is... an immortal reincarnated, descending to the mortal world to undergo tribulation so he can ascend the immortal path once more?" Dao Lord Dihui added. "An immortal reincarnated?" At those words, everyone's hearts stirred. Tales of reincarnated immortals circulated on Beihai Star as well, though such cases were extraordinarily rare. This was because even for an immortal, living a second life was exceedingly difficult. Moreover, those immortals who truly chose reincarnation to cultivate anew were usually Ghost Immortals whose paths forward were bleak, or Divine Immortals on the verge of complete fall. Even then, only a small fraction of these immortals could successfully awaken their past-life wisdom. Many reincarnated immortals ended up perishing before their past-life wisdom ever awakened. Usually, it was only after reaching a sufficiently elevated cultivation realm that one could truly comprehend their past and present lives. Yaoguang's achievements... They had already surpassed everyone's imagination. As things stood, it seemed only the concept of a reincarnated immortal could explain them. "Whether he is a reincarnated immortal or not, after this battle and the feat of slaying two Dao Lords of the Void—Jimie and Kunpeng—Dao Lord Yaoguang is bound to become the most dazzling star on Beihai Star! The annals of the Void Dao will surely dedicate a prominent page to his name!" Dao Lord Taiwei said. "Not just the Void Dao; for a very long time to come, the deeds of this Dao Lord will be sung across all of Beihai Star!" Dao Lord Danding remarked with a mix of envy and deep emotion. "Becoming a Dao Lord within two hundred years, achieving Dao Integration on the spot in the span of a single cup of tea, and upon entering Dao Integration, slaying two Dao Lords of the Void—Jimie and Kunpeng—in battle one after the other. Such a record is truly unprecedented." "Strictly speaking, Dao Lord Wujin also died because of Yaoguang. Counted this way, he has practically paved his illustrious renown with the corpses of three Dao Lords of the Void." Dao Lord Qingya said with deep yearning, "From this day forth, Beihai Star has gained yet another pinnacle Dao Lord."